Family of Liars by E. Lockhart [BOOK REVIEW]

April 13, 2022April 13, 2022 innah96Leave a comment

I am so excited I got to read “Family of Liars” before its publication date and receive an uncorrected proof. This review is SPOILER FREE for both “Family of Liars” and “We Were Liars“.

About The Book:

Pages: 298

Format I read it in: Uncorrected Proof (paperback)

Publisher: Hot Key Books

Purchase Links:
Amazon UK | Amazon US

★★★★

Synopsis:

The prequel to We Were Liars takes readers back to the story of another summer, another generation, and the secrets that will haunt them for decades to come.

A windswept private island off the coast of Massachusetts.
A hungry ocean, churning with secrets and sorrow.
A fiery, addicted heiress. An irresistible, unpredictable boy.
A summer of unforgivable betrayal and terrible mistakes.

Welcome back to the Sinclair family.
They were always liars.

My Thoughts:

“Family of Liars” is the prequel of “We Were Liars” and it features the parents from “We Were Liars” as teenagers. “Family of Liars” contains spoilers for “We Were Liars”, so if you haven’t read any of the books, I strongly recommend reading “We Were Liars” first, and then reading “Family of Liars”. I won’t give too much information on the synopsis – same like the first book, this one is better reading blind. I’ll just say this -it features the same private island, the year is 1987 and some new characters join our characters for the summer, when everything kicks off.

If you enjoyed “We Were Liars”, you will also enjoy this book! I don’t want to say it follows the same template, but it kind of does. The chapter flows in the same way, as well as the writing – still beautiful and easy to read. This writing style is a style I really enjoyed reading. If for some reason the writing bothered you in the first book, be aware that it’s very similar here too.

The emotion side was more enhanced in this book. I felt more love, heartbreak, anger and sadness and I loved it so much! I was expecting a twist this time though, and I did get it. And then I got a few more I wasn’t expecting. However, the twists in this book didn’t give the chock or wow factor and didn’t have the same intensity. They were still very cleverly done and I did not see them coming.

In my opinion, “We Were Liars” was amazing and “Family of Liars” just couldn’t top that. But that being set aside, this book was extremely enjoyable and incredibly gripping. A must-read for the fans of this genre and fans of the series. There’s definitely something about this private island that will always tickle my curiosity!

About The Author:

E. Lockhart is the author of Again Again, Genuine Fraud, We Were Liars, The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks, and several other books. Whistle: A New Gotham CIty Hero is a graphic novel.

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The Good Girl’s Guide to Rakes by Eva Leigh [BOOK REVIEW]

April 7, 2022April 9, 2022 innah96Leave a comment

I am so thrilled to be joining the blog tour for The Good Girl’s Guide to Rakes by Eva Leigh. Huge thanks to the team at Mills & Boon, for sending me a copy of the book. The Good Girl’s Guide to Rakes is the first book in the Last Chance Scoundrels series.

About The Book:

Pages: 368

Genre: Regency Romance

Publisher: Mills & Boon

Format I read it in: Paperback

Rating: ★★★★/★

Synopsis:

When Kieran Ransome’s latest antics result in a massive scandal, his father issues an ultimatum: find a respectable wife or inherit nothing. But as one of London’s most inveterate scoundrels, Kieran doesn’t know any ladies who fit the bill. Or does he?

Celeste Kilburn is a society darling, beloved by influential members of the ton. But keeping a spotless reputation leaves little room for adventure and she longs to escape her gilded cage, especially with her impending engagement to a stuffy earl. When Kieran—her older brother’s best friend and an irresistibly attractive rogue—begs for her help, Celeste makes a deal: she’ll introduce him to the right social circles if he’ll show her the scandalous side of London.

In between proper teas and garden parties, Kieran escorts Celeste—disguised as “Salome”—to rowdy gaming hells, wild fêtes, and sensual art salons. As they spend more time together, their initial attraction builds to a desperate desire that neither can ignore. But when someone discovers their midnight exploits, Celeste’s freedom and reputation are endangered, and Kieran must save the woman he loves… respectable or not.

My Thoughts:

The Good Girl’s Guide to Rakes is the second book I’ve read by Eva Leigh, the first one being “Would I Lie to the Duke”. Eva has a wonderful way of inviting you into the Regency period and keeping you hooked. I read this book very fast and enjoyed every chapter. I managed to avoid the hype that is Bridgerton for a very long time, haven’t watched a single episode, but after reading this book I binge watched the whole first season. In two days. I even started to say things like “I shall like a coffee very much.”

Back to our book, I loved Kieran and Celeste’s romance and passion so much! It’s one of those stories of slow-burn romance, where we all know these two people have feelings for each other, but they are the last ones to realize it. And by not telling each other what they feel, they are hurting themselves too. The tension is there throughout the whole book. Kieran appears to be a rake, but has a soft spot. And Celeste appears to be a respectable lady in society, but has a wild heart.

“Some men loved breasts, others were enthralled by arses or legs. But Kieran could write stanza after stanza on the allure of a woman’s neck.”

We get a lot of adventures in the book as well.

Celeste gets to ecplore the scandalous side of London and I loved her wild spirit. It was nice to meet a character in that time thatis not afraid to speak her mind, share her hopes, dreams and passions. And it was nice to meet a man that listened to a woman and actually respected her choices and cared for her freedom of speech.

“So long as no one’s harmed in its getting,” he said, his voice low, “we ought to be free to find our joy where we can. God knows that in this life, none of it’s guaranteed.”

The story intrigued me and the romance kept me going. It’s a lovely book to dive into and escape reality for a second. Even if you’re not a regency novel fan, if you love sexy and fun slow-burn romances, I warmly recommend checking “The Good Girl’s Guide to Rakes” out.

About The Author:

Eva Leigh is a USA Today bestselling author who writes novels chock-full of determined women and men who are here for it. She enjoys baking, spending too much time on the Internet, and listening to music from the ’80s. Eva and her husband live in Central California.

Eva also writes in multiple romance genres as RITA-award nominated Zoë Archer. As Alexis Stanton, she wrote the novel on which the top-rated Hallmark holiday movie “A Timeless Christmas” was based.

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Book Review · Books

Whisky For Breakfast by Christopher P. Mooney [BOOK REVIEW]

April 2, 2022March 31, 2022 innah96Leave a comment

Whisky For Breakfast is a very honest and unusual collection of 35 short stories. Every story features characters that don’t quite fit the world’s mould in today’s society. In a time when we are used to reading about the perfect characters, Whisky For Breakfast offers us characters with the perfect flaws.

About The Book:

Pages: 165

Format I read it in: Paperback

Publisher: Bridge House

Purchase Links:
Amazon UK | Amazon US

★★★

Synopsis:

The thirty-five stories in Mooney’s debut are dominated by a cast of characters who colour outside of society’s lines. They are hustlers, prostitutes, addicts, gangsters, killers, thieves, beasts. They are the dangerous, the lost, the lonely, the sick, the suicidal, the broken-hearted. Men and women, defeated by life. Their depravity is real, yet the writing in this uncompromising collection of transgressive fiction, always carefully crafted, evokes the sense that their humanity is not yet lost. In Whisky for Breakfast, nothing is off limits.

My Thoughts:

A very honest and unusual collection of 35 short stories. Every story features characters that don’t quite fit the world’s mould in today’s society. In a time when we are used to reading about the perfect characters, Whisky For Breakfast offers us characters with the perfect flaws.

Firstly, not all of the stories were to my taste. The rating is made by me giving each story a rating from 1 to 5 and the calculating the average score. Each story is different, but they all showed a lot of emotion. Because of the amazing writing, I could almost feel what a character was feeling.

Some of the stories were too explicit or too disturbing for my taste.

For instance “Where Crocodiles Sleep” and “I Forgot To Remember To Forget” were an examples of this. However, there were far more stories that I really enjoyed. “Drown Your Sorrows” was short, sweet, sinister and straight to the point. And “Nine Tenths of the Law” really intrigued me and grabbed my attention. Furthermore, I loved how the story was gamified in “See No Evil”. I remember counting more somethings (trying not to reveal anything) than the characters mentioned and feeling very smug about it, until the answer was shared later on. Funny enough, I quite enjoyed being proven wrong, and that doesn’t happen often. 🙂 Another story that really stood out for me was “Mr. Harrison”, because of its spookiness.

To conclude, I am very glad I read this book and still can’t believe it took me so long. Funnily enough, shorter books tend to scare me more than big books. Whisky For Breakfast is a mix of stories, all set to provide a different, more sinister side to character we’re not so used to seeing. Be ready to get out of your comfort zone and leave your judgements on the side, and you’re in for a treat!

About The Author:

Christopher P. Mooney was born in Glasgow, Scotland, in 1978. At various times in his life he has been a paperboy, a supermarket cashier, a shelf stacker, a barman, a cinema usher, a carpet fitter’s labourer, a foreign-language assistant and a teacher.

He currently lives and writes in someone else’s small flat near London and his debut collection of short transgressive fiction, Whisky for Breakfast, is available now from Bridge House Publishing.

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Book Review · Books

We Were Liars by E. Lockhart [BOOK REVIEW]

March 31, 2022March 31, 2022 innah961 Comment

We Were Liars found me, instead of the other way around. It was hidden in the pile of books in my sister’s room and something compelled me to touch it. Then I read the synopsis, and it didn’t reveal anything. So of course, I wanted to know more. I needed to know more.

About The Book:

Pages: 225

Format I read it in: Paperback

Publisher: Hot Key Books

Purchase Links:
Amazon UK | Amazon US

★★★★★

Synopsis:

A beautiful and distinguished family.
A private island.
A brilliant, damaged girl; a passionate, political boy.
A group of four friends—the Liars—whose friendship turns destructive.
A revolution. An accident. A secret.
Lies upon lies.
True love.
The truth.

We Were Liars is a modern, sophisticated suspense novel from New York Times bestselling author, National Book Award finalist, and Printz Award honoree E. Lockhart.

Read it.

And if anyone asks you how it ends, just LIE.

My Thoughts:

As you can see, the synopsis doesn’t give too much information. The mystery of it all brought out a curiosity I thought I had lost. We tend to rely so much on synopsis these days, that we become afraid to pick up books when we don’t know what they’re about. And I am so glad I dived into this one blind – it’s the only way to go!

And what an adventure this book is. We Were Liars is a story about a young lady and an accident. As we go through the book, we find out more and more about this lady, her family, her friends. A lot of lies, a lot of secrets, a lot of unknowns – all with a chill mood of young people having fun and easy to read chapters.

The book is quite short – 225 pages, and for instance, the chapters are very short too, with a lot of dialogues or easy monologues. As soon as you start reading, you get immersed into that world and you can’t stop reading.

And then we get to THE PLOT TWIST!!

I was very pleasantly stunned when I finished the book. I was hooked throughout the whole book and wasn’t sure what I was expecting, but it definitely wasn’t that plot twist for sure! The ending was so shocking, that even now thinking back, I’m still shocked and amazed at how cleverly E. Lockhart did everything and set us up for that ending.

We Were Liars is one of those books that you just have to re-read again, just to see if you have missed any clues along the way and re-read the same story, knowing what you now know.

I definitely recommend it! If you pick this book up, you’ll definitely be in for a treat. And if you decide to read it, I recommend going in blind without knowing too much of the synopsis, to get the full experience!

About The Author:

E. Lockhart is the author of Again Again, Genuine Fraud, We Were Liars, The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks, and several other books. Whistle: A New Gotham CIty Hero is a graphic novel.

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Book Review · Books

Pizza Girl by Jean Kyoung Frazier [BOOK REVIEW]

March 26, 2022March 26, 2022 innah96Leave a comment

Pizza Girl is one of those books where I just couldn’t connect to the story and characters, and it’s not the book’s fault. I enjoyed the writing and read it quite fast, but it didn’t leave a long-lasting impression.

About The Book:

Pages: 192

Format I read it in: Hardcover

Publisher: HQ Stories

Purchase Links:
Amazon UK | Amazon US

★★★

Synopsis:

Pizza Girl is a story about an 18-year-old girl that is going through a lot. She is pregnant, living with her mum and boyfriend, and she recently lost her dad. Unsure of every aspect of her life, she is struggling and trying to get by.

Working as a pizza delivery girl, one day she delivers a pizza to Jenny, a stay-at-home mum that has just moved in the neighbourhood.

Every week, these two women interact with each other, and whilst both are fighting their demons, their relationship begins to blur into something unknown and complicated.

My Thoughts:

I am sad to say that I broke up with this book, and it was one of those “it’s not you, it’s me” breakups. Even though I loved the writing and the idea of the story, I wasn’t impressed. Both women made some decisions that I still can’t wrap my head around. Especially our heroine. She has a mum and a boyfriend that care about her in their own way, and she doesn’t seem to acknowledge this. There is a lot going on in her life – it’s not easy to go through pregnancy and the loss of a parent, but she also doesn’t make it easier on herself and avoids help at all costs. Pizza Girl definitely brought all her emotions to life, because I felt everything. I simply couldn’t connect to her struggles in a way that made me care about her character. She crossed a lot of lines, especially around the end of the book and I couldn’t get past that.

Aside from the above, Pizza Girl is a very gripping and easy to read. You will be able to feel all the emotions whilst reading. I was laughing out loud and felt the sadness and anger too. If you are intrigued by the synopsis and are up for reading something out of the ordinary, you might enjoy this book. It just wasn’t the one for me.